May 2009

What Does This Mean?

Unfortunately, prices have fallen from where they were 12 months ago.  A quick look at the sales statistics from April shows us some promising information, however:

April 2009

The average home sales price for April 2009 was $267,170.  In may, that number was $281,235, or an increase of just over 5% in sales price!  Not only that, but there were 86 homes sold in April, and 119 homes sold in May.  That’s a 28% increase in home sales over the last month!

So we know that home sales are up, sales prices are starting to rise, but why is the market starting to look a little brighter?  Well, part of it is that prices and affordability are enticing more buyers.  That, along with 45 year lows on interest rates, as well as the $8,000 new home tax incentive, means that first time buyers are seeing value in the soft market.

It’s too early to say turnaround, but home sellers are seeing some encouraging information here!  Let’s hope that this is the start of a broader economic recovery!

~Jonathan Benya- Realtor
Century 21 New Millennium
9405-A Chesapeake St
La Plata, MD 20646
301-609-9000 – office
301-653-8116 – cell

Charles County Real Estate Blog
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Southern Maryland Custom Homes & Land

Real estate sales in Charles County, MD have been on a roller coaster ride recently. Unfortunately, the last year has been more of a plunge than a climb. It’s left a lot of homeowners asking “what happened?” and just as many buyers waiting for the market to bottom out. We could talk for hours about the market, but here’s the gist of what’s happening:

1. Average time on market, which is the amount of time it takes a home to sell, is up to almost 160 days. This is a record high, and is likely to climb as we head into the winter months. It is typical that the average time on market grows as home sales drop during the winter. After all, who wants to move when there’s snow on the ground?
2. Average and Median Sales Price has fallen back to about $300,000. We saw this number a few months ago, but the rise has been largely attributed to the increase in mid to upper end homes that were sold during the summer, not an increase in actual values. I would suspect that this number will continue to fall.

   

3. The number of active listings has fallen again this month. This is good because we need to see supply drop in order to regain a sense of market stability. What’s difficult to determine is if this is due to homes being foreclosed on and going off the market, or frustrated sellers just giving up as the weather turns colder.
4. The number of sold homes and pending sales have both grown to over 100 per month! This is excellent news, because we seem to be slowly climbing back up to our traditional averages. It is important to note this because it shows that buyers may finally be returning to the market, and if we continue to see this number grow over the next few months, we may be looking at the beginning of a much more positive year in 2009!

If you have any questions about the real estate market in Charles County MD, please don’t hesitate to ask!

~Jonathan Benya- Realtor
Century 21 New Millennium
9405-A Chesapeake St
La Plata, MD 20646
301-609-9000
301-653-8116
Charles County Real Estate Blog

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